Drinking and driving

Even one drink can reduce your ability to react to things that happen suddenly while you are driving. The effects of alcohol include blurred or double vision, impaired attention and slowed reflexes. Your life and the lives of others can change forever if you drive after drinking alcohol.

Blood alcohol concentration

The amount of alcohol in your body is measured by the amount of the alcohol in your blood. This is called blood alcohol concentration, or BAC. Once you take a drink, there is no way to guess what your BAC is.

Many factors can affect your blood alcohol level including:

how fast you drink

whether you are male or female

your body weight

the amount of food in your stomach

In Ontario and the rest of Canada, the maximum legal BAC for fully licensed drivers is 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood (0.08). Driving with BAC over 0.08 is a criminal offence.

Warn range

In Ontario, your BAC does not have to be over the 0.08 legal limit to result in serious consequences. If you register a BAC from 0.05 to 0.08 (commonly referred to as the warn range), you will face provincial administrative penalties.

Drug impaired driving

Drug impaired driving is illegal. Drugs can also impair your ability to drive. This is true for both illegal drugs and prescription or over-the-counter medication.

Tips to avoid impaired driving

There are simple steps you can take to avoid driving while you're impaired by drugs or alcohol:

make sure you have a plan to get home safely

ask your doctor or pharmacist about side effects related to driving when using prescription medication

read the information on the package of any prescription drugs or over-the-counter medicine, including allergy and cold remedies

ask your doctor or pharmacist about how a prescription drug could affect you- drugs and alcohol together can impair your driving even more than either one alone

Remember, fatigue and stress will also affect your ability to drive safely.

Lifetime licence suspension (can be reduced to 10 years if certain conditions are met)

*The Reduced Suspension with Ignition Interlock Conduct Review Program allows eligible drivers convicted for the first time of an alcohol impaired driving offence under the Criminal Code to reduce their licence suspension in return for meeting specific requirements, such as the mandatory installation of an approved ignition interlock device in their vehicle.

Education and treatment programs

You will need to participate in an education or treatment program if you have:

been convicted of an impaired driving-related offence

received more than one licence suspension (within a 10 year period) for any combination of:

driving with a BAC above zero while you are 21 years and under;

driving with a BAC above zero while you are a novice driver;

driving with a BAC above 0.05 (“warn range”);

driving with a BAC above 0.08 (“legal limit”);

failing or refusing to comply with a demand for alcohol or drug testing; and

driving impaired by a drug or a combination of a drug and alcohol

You will receive information from the Ministry of Transportation, including the specific remedial measures requirements and how to complete them.

The program in Ontario is called Back on Track. It is delivered by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

$294 (education or treatment) for drivers who receive more than one licence suspension for impaired driving within a ten year period

There are three components to the Back on Track program: an assessment, an education or treatment program, and a follow-up interview. For more details, visit the Back on Track website.

Ignition Interlock

If you receive an administrative licence suspension for impaired driving more than two times within a ten year period, you will need to install an approved ignition interlock device in your vehicle.

Suspensions include any combination of:

driving with a BAC above zero while you are 21 years and under;

driving with a BAC above zero while you are a novice driver;

driving with a BAC above 0.05 (“warn range”);

driving with a BAC above 0.08 (“legal limit”);

failing or refusing to comply with a demand for alcohol or drug testing; and,

driving impaired by a drug or a combination of a drug and alcohol

Medical Review

If you receive a licence suspension for impaired driving more than three times within a ten year period, you will need to undergo a mandatory medical evaluation. You will be sent a Substance Abuse Assessment form to be completed by your family doctor or a doctor who specializes in addiction medicine. This assessment will determine whether you are alcohol dependent and whether further intervention is needed.

Depending on the information your doctor provides, the ministry may keep your licence suspended until you fulfill the necessary medical requirements for licensing.

Suspensions include any combination of:

driving with a BAC above zero while you are 21 years and under;

driving with a BAC above zero while you are a novice driver;

driving with a BAC above 0.05 (“warn range”);

driving with a BAC above 0.08 (“legal limit”);

failing or refusing to comply with a demand for alcohol or drug testing; and,

driving impaired by a drug or a combination of a drug and alcohol

Licence reinstatement

Criminal conviction

If you have been convicted of impaired driving, you should register for an education or treatment program immediately, as the program can take up to 11 months to complete.

You will need to complete all three components of the Back on Track program before your licence suspension expires. You will also need to satisfy all other requirements set by the courts to have your licence reinstated.

Ignition interlock

If you are eligible for the Reduced Suspension with Ignition Interlock Conduct Review Program, you need to complete the assessment component of the Back on Track program before your licence is reinstated.

More than one administrative licence suspension for impaired driving

If you are fulfilling the Back on Track program because you receive more than one licence suspension for alcohol and/or drug impaired driving you have 120 days from the start of your suspension to complete the education course and 180 days to complete the treatment course.

Resources for drivers

1-888 TAXIGUY: A service that links callers directly to a partner taxi company in their city, available in over 250 cities and towns across Ontario.

arrive alive DRIVE SOBER: a provincial organization that aims to increase awareness of injury and death caused by impaired driving and to provide alternatives to driving impaired.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. What are the penalties for impaired boating?

Boaters caught drinking and boating in Ontario face consequences similar to those for drinking and driving:

Immediate 3, 7 or 30 day driver's licence suspension if caught with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) in the "warn range” of 0.05 to 0.08 and for drivers impaired by drugs or a combination of drugs and alcohol based on the results of a Standard Field Sobriety Test. Drivers caught in the "warn range" more than once will face a mandatory alcohol education program and could be subject to treatment programs and ignition interlock.

Immediate 90-day administrative driver's licence suspension and a $180 administrative fine for boaters exceeding the “legal limit” of 0.08 BAC drivers who fail or refuse to provide a breath or blood sample and drivers who are impaired by drugs or a combination of drugs and alcohol based on the results of a Drug Recognition Expert evaluation.

If convicted under the Criminal Code, the boater will also face:

Driver's licence suspension, from one year up to a lifetime ban

Mandatory alcohol assessment, education or treatment, and follow-up

Ignition interlock condition on their driver's licence for one year to up to a lifetime

Vehicle impoundment if caught driving a motor vehicle while under suspension

These sanctions apply to anyone who is caught drinking and operating motorized and non-motorized vessels, including power boats, canoes, kayaks, personal watercraft, sailboats, rafts, dinghies and other inflatable boats.